Bottle carrier



Aug. 24, 1954 Filed Sept. 15. 1950' E. L- ARNESON BOTTLE CARRIER 2 Sheets-She et 1 IN V EN TOR.

' jaZw/zZ 497265072,

A g- 24, 1954 E. L. ARNESON 2,687,232

BOTTLE CARRIER Filed Sept. 15. 1950 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 i L lNl ENToR.

I 1 46 flwzrzl EPW619022, "Ill" a: 1:; 6 BY "2H Patented Aug. 24, 1954 BGTTLE CARRIER Ed in L- ne on, Morri l... assignor to Morris Paper ills, Ch ca l corpo a on of ll nois Application September 15, 1950, Serial No. 184,999

2 Claims. 1

The present invention relates to improvements in a carrier for bottles and like articles of uni-. form size and shape, which carrier is fabricated from flexible paperboard material. More specifie cally, the invention deals with a carrier of this sort having improved qualities of strength and stability which adapt it particularly well to the packaging, display and transportation of a sub-. stantial number of bottles, i. e., from six to twelve.

It is a general object of the invention to provide an improved bottle carrier of the above description, characterized by an adequately strong and stiff, central suspending panel to support the weight of such a large package, which panel also serves as a longitudinal partition separating rows of bottles on opposite sides thereof; by improved provisions whereby a large number of individual cells to separate successive bottles in the rows may be produced, employing a blank of minimum size; and by an improved relationship of these cell-forming provisions with relation to the side walls of the carrier, whereby the latter are sub.- stantially stiffened and strengthened.

A more specific object of the invention is to provide an improved paperboard carrier of the type referred to above, fabricated from a single, unitary blank which is shaped to facilitate manipulation of the blank on a known type of automatic folding and gluing machine, in that the blank is creased and slitted to define two sets of successive, integrally articulated cross partition forming and side wall reinforcing elements of improved character, which are also particularly well suited to the manufacture of a carrier for a number of bottles in excess of six.

It is still another specific object of the invention to provide a bottle carrier characterized by a multiple-ply, rigid suspending and partition panel subdividing its interior into two halves, and by a set of cross partition elements for each half, in which the elements of each set are arranged in integrally connected succession, being into.- grally hinged to inner plies of said panel and extending in opposite direction to the respective side walls of the carrier, to which they are secured by integral connecting elements, thereby enabling the carrier to be produced in sizes up to and, if desired, exceeding 12-bottle capacity, with assurance that the bottles will be fully and effectively shielded from damaging contact with one another in transit.

The foregoing statements are indicative in a general way of the nature of the invention. Other and more specific objects will be apparent to 2 those skilled in the art upon a full understand? ing of the construction and operation of the device.

A single embodiment of the invention is presented herein for purpose of illustration. It will be appreciated that the invention may be incorporated in other modified forms coming equally within the scope of the appended claims.

In the drawings,

Fig. 1 is a top plan view of the paperboard blank which is employed in constructing the improved carrier, indicating the manner in which the blank is preliminarily coated with adhesive in certain areas thereof;

Fig. 2 is a to plan view of the blank following certain preliminary folding operations performed thereon, also indicating the further application of adhesive preliminary to a succeeding operation;

Fig. 3 is a plan view of the blank following the operation referred to, and showing the application of adhesive prior to a final folding operation;

Fig. 4 is a plan view of the completed carrier, in the flat, knocked-down condition thereof in which it is shipped or stored;

Fig. 5 is a perspective view illustrating the carrier in its operative, erected condition, ready for the reception of its contents;

Fig. 6 is a somewhat enlarged view in longitudinal vertical section along a line corresponding to line 6-6 of Fig. 5, illustrating certain in ternal structural details of the carrier; and

Fig. '7 is a view in vertical transverse section along line 'm-$1 of Fig. 6, further illustrating structural characteristics of the carrier.

Referring to Figs. 1 through i, the paperboard, bottle carrier of the invention is constructed from a blank which is. died out, out orslitted, and creased in the manner illustrated in Fig. 1. Generally, blank Ill comprises a wall and partition forming section it and a bottom forming section iii which is integrally hinged to the section it by means of a preformed fold or crease line l3 coinciding with one of the longer margins of the blank. Section I? is sub-divided into two equal bottom forming panels i l by means of a crease i5 paralleling crease it. A glue lap it is foldably connected to the outermost panel i l by a crease IT.

The partition and wall forming section H is symmetrical about the line of a series of medial creases and cuts, which line is generally desig-.'

nated by the reference numeral H. In view of this symmetry, the parts on only one side of the 3 medial line 11' will be described. On the understanding that parts on the other side are substantially identical thereto and are associated with one another in a similar relationship, such other parts are designated by similar reference numerals.

Section II includes an elongated rectangular side wall forming panel i8 which is of the full length of the completed carton. An end wall forming panel to is hingedly conjoined by crease 20 to one end margin of panel l8, and a terminal flap 2! is foldably connected to panel I9 by means of the crease 22. The two panels 2! on opposite sides of the medial line ll of the blank are integrally and bendably connected to one another by a crease 23 which coincides with and forms a part of the line.

The opposite end margin of side wall forming panel i8 is integrally connected by crease 24 with an end wall panel 25, the other margin of the panel 25 being defined by crease 26 which extends the full crosswise dimension of the blank. End wall panels I9 and 25 are shaped similarly along the marginal edge thereof, being inclined toward medial line H.

An outer longitudinal partition and handle forming panel 21 extends to the left from the crease 26, as viewed in Fig. 1, this panel being substantially equal in length to the side wall panel 18. It is separated from the end wall panel 25 by an inclined slit 28, and is partially separated from the side wall panel 18 by shaped cuts which define recesses 29 in the margin of the panel 21 adjacent the wall panel. Panel 2? is left partially connected to the side wall panel i8 adjoining recesses 29 by means of short lines of perforations 39, which preserve the unitary character of the blank during manufacture and thereby facilitate its manipulation in an automatic gluing and folding machine of well known type.

The material of the blank to the left of the panel 2? is died out in a shape which continues the linear upper margin of side wall panel is, providing an outline for the end wall panel iii similar to that of the opposite end wall panel 25, as stated above. The respective panels 21 on opposite sides of the medial line ll are hingedly connected to one another by a crease 32 which constitutes a part of that line. Slots 33 extend from opposite ends of crease 32, respectively, to the free edge of panel 2? and to the end wall defining crease 26.

An inner longitudinal partition panel 3% is integrally connected to end wall panel 25 by the crease 26. It is of length equal to the outer longitudinal partition and handle panel 2? and is provided with a handhole 35 of well known type, adapted to be aligned with the handhole 3B of panel 27 when these panels are in their operative superposed relation, as hereinafter described.

The respective panels 34 on opposite sides of the medial line ll are hingedly connected to one another by spaced creases 31 of that line, these creases being separated from one another by an intermediate, elongated slot 38. A small slot 39 also extends from the outer end of the outermost crease 3'! to the margin of the panel 34. The various slots 33, 38 and 39 serve the purpose of accommodating the multi-ply thickness of material adjoining the medial line ll when the two symmetric halves of section II are folded upon one another in completing the carrier. They substantially facilitate manipulation of the blank in the gluing and folding apparatus.

An important feature of the invention resides in the cross partition provisions for separating bottles or other articles arranged in rows on opposite sides of the longitudinal partition and handle of the carrier, constituted by the panels 21, 34 arranged in superposed, face contacting relation. The bottle carrier chosen for the purpose of illustration is capable of receiving four bottles on each side of the partition, each bottle separated from its neighbor by a partition clement, wall or strap; and the improved provisions which result in these cross partition members lend themselves particularly well to the production of carriers having a relatively large number of bottle receiving cells, 1. e., eight, ten, twelve, or in fact any multiple of two.

To the end noted, the panel 3c is provided with a plurality of parallel creases 453, M, 42 and 43 which parallel the end wall defining crease 26, extending outwardly from the longitudinal partition portion of panel 34 to the longitudinal side margin of the blank. The crease Kill serves to flexibly connect a cross partition member 44 to the area of the partition panel 3 which is specifically designated by the reference numeral iii. The next crease serves to flexibly connect a glue section or panel 3 to the member id, and to flexibly connect to the partition panel 34 a second cross partition member ll. Section 55 and member ii are separated from one another by an inclined angled slit 53 which extends from a point adjacent but spaced inwardly of the outer extremity of the third crease 42 to the opposite extremity of the hinge id of partition member 44. It is to be understood that when the carton is completed the section it is adhesively secured to the side wall panel 38 of the carrier and the memhere 44, ill are disposed at a right angle thereto, extending between the longitudinal partition and the side wall panel.

Similar provisions, including the crease 42 and a second inclined slit 49 identical to slit 58, serve to separate a second glue section or panel 50 from a third cross partition member 5! and to hingedly connect the section so and member 5| respectively to the adhesive bearing section 46 and longitudinal partition panel 34. Like slit 48, the slit 9 inclines from a point adjacent but spaced from the terminus of crease .3 to the opposite extremity of the crease M. The cross par tition structure is completed by a terminal glue lap 52 which is hingedly connected to the remainder of the blank by crease 43.

In assembling and completing the carrier from the blank shown in Fig. l, adhesive is applied to the partition and handle forming panel 2'! and to the side wall engaging members 45, 5B and glue lap 552, as indicated by stippling in Fig. 1. The portion of the blank to the right of the crease 2% is then folded inwardly and downwardly about that crease, causing the longitudinal partition panels 2?, 3 3 to be adherently connected and the members 53 and glue lap 52 similarly to adhere to the side wall panel it. A portion of the blank to the left of crease 233 is next folded inwardly and downwardly about that crease, causing the areas of flap 2! which overlie the partition and handle panels 3A to become adherently connected to the latter. This leaves the blank in the condition illustrated in Fig. 2. Next, adhesive is supplied to the upwardly exposed areas of flaps 2i and panel 34, including the lower portion 45 thereof, as indicated by stippling in Fig. 2. The two sections of the blank are next folded upon one another about the medial crease 11', causing the same to be adherently connected in the glued areas and leaving the blank in the condition shown in Fig. 3. Adhesive is next applied to the bottom glue lap l6 and the bottom forming section I2 is folded upon itself about its medial crease l5. This brings the carrier to finally completed condition as illustrated in Fig. 4.

The carrier is illustrated in Figs. 5, 6 and 7 in the operative, erected condition thereof, ready for the reception of its contents. This is an eight bottle type, and it is evident that by laying out the necessary number of successive slitted and glued sections from which the partition members 41, and side engaging members 46, 50 are defined, the number of the cells of the carrier may be increased as desired. The cross partitions 44, 47, 5! are strongly connected at opposite margins thereof to the multi-ply partition and suspending member of the carrier, generally designated by the reference numeral 54. They are adhesively connected to the side wall I8 by the members 46, 50 and flap 52, causing a substantial rigidification of the side walls, as Well as increasin resistance to displacement of the cross members. The end walls constituted by panels [9 are interleaved by flaps 2| thereof with the plies of the partition and suspending member or handle 54, resulting in a very strong, stable structure in which stresses on the handle and walls are interdistributed.

The recessing of certain of the longitudinal partition panels, as indicated by the reference numeral 29 in Figs. 1, 3, 5 and 7, aflords space to receive the upper edges of the partition straps as the latter swing from a. knocked-down position coplanar with the longitudinal partition to a transversely extending position at a right angle to the partition.

I claim:

1. An article carrier fabricated from a, blank of flexible paperboard material comprising, in a flat, knocked down condition thereof, a pair of longitudinal partition panels integrally hinged to one another by a horizontal, top marginal crease, a pair of side wall panels, end wall members integrally hinged by vertical creases to said respective partition and side wall panels, a bottom forming structure integral with at least one of said side wall panels, cross partition structures associated with the respective longitudinal partition panels, a pair of outer, handle forming panels integrally connected by vertical creases to corresponding ends of said longitudinal partition panels and to one another by a horizontal crease, said handle forming panels being secured in externally overlying, side-by-side relation to said respective longitudinal partition panels, each of said cross partition structures comprising two or more partition forming panels arranged in immediate succession lengthwise of the longitudinal partition panel, said partition forming panels being integrally hinged by vertical creases to the longitudinal partition panel, each of said partition forming panels including a partition section and a wall engaging section integrally hinged by a vertical crease to said partition section, and means to secure the wall engaging sections to said respective side wall panels in face-to-face engagement therewith.

2. An article carrier in accordance with claim 1 in which said handle forming panels are sepaarated by cuts from said end wall members and are severably connected by weakened portions to said respective side wall panels.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date v 2,322,396 Slevin June 22, 1943 2,537,452 Forrer June 9, 1951 

